Bethel - A piece of home in Ebenezer House

"I was sure that there would never be a Russian war of aggression," says Oksana Zakharchuk. The mother of four was wrong. When the air raids reached her hometown of Rivne in north-west Ukraine, she and her children initially sought refuge in the cellar. "Down there, you quickly lose your sense of whether it's day or night," she recalls. Her husband was in Poland at the start of the war and begged her to join him. "But I didn't want to leave. I hoped that the war would end quickly," says the Ukrainian woman.

Resistance quickly formed in Rivne and the population prepared for defence. For her mother, it was finally clear: "We have to get out of here". On 6 March 2022, she fled with her children, first to Poland and then on to Germany with her husband Yurii. The family left everything behind - their home, their friends, their plans for the future - and finally found refuge in Bielefeld-Bethel.

More than a year has passed since then. They miss home, but the family has settled in well: Oksana and Yurii Zakharchuk live in the village with their sons and daughters. The teacher couple work at Bethel House Ebenezer, their children attend a grammar school and their 19-year-old daughter takes part in language courses. "We have built a nest for ourselves and are very grateful," emphasises Oksana Zakharchuk. Germany gives them security.

When the couple heard about Bethel taking in refugee children with disabilities last spring, they were immediately determined to lend a hand. "We are all people in the same situation. We are doing well and we feel obliged to help," says Oksana Zakharchuk. The two have been looking after the young Ukrainian men with disabilities at Ebenezer House since May 2022. They are two of a total of twelve employees there from Ukraine. They prepare the boys for school or work, read to them, paint or do handicrafts together.

Text: Christina Heitkämper | Photos: Sarah Jonek